Poll: Your view on parents spanking their children?

anthony87

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PercyBoleyn said:
anthony87 said:
No it's not and no you don't. It's unfortunate that you don't understand that.
So I can have you on record as saying that hitting someone does not cause them physical pain?

No. You have me on record saying that it's possible to hit someone without causing them physical pain.

anthony87 said:
Proven by what? By whom? You gotta give me something here because I find it hard to believe that a light tap on the ass can cause lasting psychological damage.
*links snipped for space*
Some of those were an interesting read. Particularly that part about how spanking didn't seem to cause as much difference among black/hispanic kids compared to caucasian kids. I'll concede that it can cause harm to some kids. But to say that anyone who's spanked will definitely develop problems is ridiculous. Like I said, for some it works, for some it doesn't. It's a massively grey area and nowhere near as black and white as you're making it out to be.

anthony87 said:
Please read what I've said again. I already put down other ways that a child can be disciplined besides spanking them. You really need to get over your own personal bias and try to look at things rationally.
And I pointed out that if you are unable to discipline your child without resorting to physical force then you should consider making an apointment with a psychologist in order to put your anger issues under control and talk about other ways of disciplining your child, ways that do not involve hitting them.
There's that personal bias again. Just because your Daddy or whoever was an angry asshole who beat the crap out of you, that doesn't mean that when a parent spanks their child they do it out of anger. More assumptions and generalisations.

anthony87 said:
Meh, no meaner than be told that your parents should've been sterilized, that they were bad parents, that YOU'LL be a bad parent, that you should see a psychologist etc.
So, what, acknowledging that you have a problem and actively trying to resolve it is offensive now?
I.....you lost me here. Do you mean me specifically? Do you mean "you" in general? And how can telling someone that their parents should've been sterilized NOT be construed as offensive? Besides, there's no "acknowledging" going on. There's just you with your misplaced sense of self-superiority making some of the broadest generalisations I've ever seen.
 

elvor0

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Ljs1121 said:
[footnote]This was just a regular corner in the living room, no torture traps or anything like that[/footnote] for a little while or have my mouth washed out with soap and water.
That's an interesting one, I didn't think people /actually/ did that >< Seems a bit too much effort to me.

And it was obviously a torture corner. For there can be no other form of discipline other than degrading, mentally scarring and physically mutilating abuse. EVER. There's no context or logic round these parts!
 

anthony87

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Signa said:
The most disgusting thing about these threads is how judgmental the anti-spankers get. "you're a bad parent. You need therapy. You're hurting the innocent! Spanking is sexual!" Yet the pro-spankers say it's all cool if you want to spank or not, they are leaving it up to the parent to decide what is right for their own kids. No one is advocating abuse, no matter how much some of you may want to spin it to sound like that.


I wanted to say something like that but you've put it far better than I could.
 

TheIronRuler

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elvor0 said:
Ljs1121 said:
[footnote]This was just a regular corner in the living room, no torture traps or anything like that[/footnote] for a little while or have my mouth washed out with soap and water.
That's an interesting one, I didn't think people /actually/ did that >< Seems a bit too much effort to me.

And it was obviously a torture corner. For there can be no other form of discipline other than degrading, mentally scarring and physically mutilating abuse. EVER. There's no context or logic round these parts!
.
Happened to me once with a relative.
It was... terrible.
 

elvor0

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TheIronRuler said:
elvor0 said:
Ljs1121 said:
[footnote]This was just a regular corner in the living room, no torture traps or anything like that[/footnote] for a little while or have my mouth washed out with soap and water.
That's an interesting one, I didn't think people /actually/ did that >< Seems a bit too much effort to me.

And it was obviously a torture corner. For there can be no other form of discipline other than degrading, mentally scarring and physically mutilating abuse. EVER. There's no context or logic round these parts!
.
Happened to me once with a relative.
It was... terrible.
I can imagine. I mean a quick clip round the ear gets your attention, but dragging someone to the bathroom then forcing some soap in their mouth is just excessive.
 

chadachada123

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In public, it should be ONLY used as a last resort or in a matter of extreme urgency (like, say, if a kid almost did something that has a high risk of death or serious injury).

In private, it still should only be used for certain transgressions. I prefer punishments that fit the crime. If a kid wants to stay up past bedtime, let them, and then drag their sorry ass to school the next morning, explaining that there is a reason why bedtime is a specific time. Most things that a kid can do have an alternate punishment that is more effective, and those should be implemented when possible.

In particular, punishments should never be given out of anger. If the child is to be spanked, it can't be in a fit of rage, and if anything it should be seen as a necessary evil.

Additionally, it's very important that the child, if possible, understands WHY he's receiving a particular punishment, otherwise it may just breed defiance without respect.

All in all, there's a pretty damn huge difference between abuse and spanking, and I'd say that my parents did a pretty damn good job training me. Still, there were some areas that could use improvement, like when my dad spanked me once for something I didn't do. That kinda sucked.
 

Imperioratorex Caprae

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I got spanked rarely, but when I acted way out of line. Negative effect? None. I'm non-violent, almost a pacifist. I prefer diplomacy first, agreeing to disagree second, walking away third and violence only as a last resort when there aren't any other options to solve a problem. By which I mean backed into a corner and threatened.
The things I learned most from:
1. Falling off my skateboard and skinning my knee, busting up my arm, and otherwise generally hurting myself. Lesson: Don't fall, or get better at it.
2. touching the stove when it was on when I was 5. Hurt like hell, taught me not to do that again.
3. Staying out late, way past when my parents said I had to come home and also leaving the kids house I was at to go to another friend's house. Parents were worried as hell and I didn't bother to A. Call and ask, B. Tell them where I was going. I got my ass busted a couple times, no marks, no bruises. I learned really quick to inform my parents what I was up to.

Pain teaches us a lot of things. I was a very VERY sensitive child, yet I didn't learn to bust my kids up for every minor transgression they pulled. Only when there were no other solutions present. Meaning, when the kid keeps doing it over and over and taking away toys, video games/tv, timeout, etc. do nothing to prevent the attitude.

Also you must all realize that kids are taught to use Child Services as a threat or weapon against their parents nowadays to get whatever they want and those people don't take parents' words over kids. I know, I've dealt with them before over bullshit. Also I've learned that a lot of the people who run or work for those services have never had kids of their own. How in the hell can these people be considered for that job when they've never even had to care for their own child I will never fucking understand.

TL;DR: I am sorry if you think spanking a kid only teaches them violence, you know little about raising a child. It would be nice if just talking to them helped, and most of the time it does, but there are extreme situations that call for extreme measures, and I don't think a spanking is the same as beating the shit out of your kid.
 

chadachada123

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elvor0 said:
Ljs1121 said:
for a little while or have my mouth washed out with soap and water.
That's an interesting one, I didn't think people /actually/ did that >< Seems a bit too much effort to me.
My grandma has done it at least once while babysitting, and my mother says she's done it 'just once' before. I can remember at least one of these instances. It was...unpleasant, to say the least.

I'm talking to my mom right now, and she says that she felt it was very effective as a punishment, even though, in hindsight, soap doesn't really taste THAT bad. One of my friends, when forced to do this, took a bite out of his soap bar and swallowed it.
 

Bestival

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I have no real strong opinion about it, though if you need to hit your child to keep him/her in line I will consider you a worse parent than my parents are... They never hit any of us, and both of my sisters turned out great! (I'm a bit of an underachiever. I'm very thankful for my druggy cousin, if not for him I'd sooo be the black sheep in the family.)
 

Signa

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anthony87 said:
Signa said:
The most disgusting thing about these threads is how judgmental the anti-spankers get. "you're a bad parent. You need therapy. You're hurting the innocent! Spanking is sexual!" Yet the pro-spankers say it's all cool if you want to spank or not, they are leaving it up to the parent to decide what is right for their own kids. No one is advocating abuse, no matter how much some of you may want to spin it to sound like that.


I wanted to say something like that but you've put it far better than I could.
Thank you for the applause. It grinds my gears with all these accusations flying around. If you weren't spanked, then you have no place telling everyone that was spanked that they are victims or child abusers. Let the people who were spanked rant about how they were abused when they were naughty.

And being bashed with pots and getting concussions doesn't count for this conversation. That's just fucked up.
 

anthony87

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Signa said:
anthony87 said:
Signa said:
The most disgusting thing about these threads is how judgmental the anti-spankers get. "you're a bad parent. You need therapy. You're hurting the innocent! Spanking is sexual!" Yet the pro-spankers say it's all cool if you want to spank or not, they are leaving it up to the parent to decide what is right for their own kids. No one is advocating abuse, no matter how much some of you may want to spin it to sound like that.


I wanted to say something like that but you've put it far better than I could.
Thank you for the applause. It grinds my gears with all these accusations flying around. If you weren't spanked, then you have no place telling everyone that was spanked that they are victims or child abusers. Let the people who were spanked rant about how they were abused when they were naughty.

And being bashed with pots and getting concussions doesn't count for this conversation. That's just fucked up.
And it's the people who were spanked who AREN'T ranting. It always seems to be the ones who don't know what they're talking about that have the most to say.
 

C F

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Hold on, I'm going to do the (non)sensible thing here, and refer my initial opinions on this rather controversial ethical topic... over to a comedian's anecdote.

<youtube=9pAHEcYnaAE>

You see, children are stupid. Kind of an undisputable fact there; they haven't fully developed their minds. They need to learn lessons as they grow up, and it's a parent's job to guide their upbringing.

One of the important things to do is establish a child's respect for positions of authority, the first immediate one being that of a parent over a child. This is something they need to understand. Get this down, you'll be able to teach a kid any lesson and they will feel obligated to learn it and take it to heart.
If you can get them to wholly comprehend and respect this fact without resorting to any sort of physical reprimand, then good for you, that child is a really good kid and you should be oh so very proud.

I can personally assure you that that is not always the case.

My mom beat me as a kid, and I learned to respect her and the experiences she passed on to me . The occasional physical violence will drill straight into a child's mind who's in charge. Couple that with teaching them why they were punished, and they feel they learn something from a figure who knows better than them. It shouldn't take long for the little child to respect the adult's authority and wisdom. Naturally as a child grows older, they learn that adults aren't infallible. Let them comprehend that fact in due time. But while they are a kid, let them be subject to a physical reprimand when necessary. Also tell them what it is they did wrong, and (the important part) why it was wrong. Each instance is a two part mental exercise for the kid's developing mind, both in cause and effect relationships and mental association.

I'm eighteen now, and I got my Associate's degree a year ago because my mother encouraged me to go for it. So I did. Now here's the important bit: I did it because I wanted to. I didn't do it to appease some authority I feared, I did it because my mother instilled the values of education and learning into me as a kid. I put genuine thought into the option of pursuing an early college education, saw the benefits from it, and made the directive my own. It was merely her suggestion, but it was my choice.

Now let me tell you about my brother. We have always shared a room and have had pretty symmetrical upbringings when we were younger. The only key difference is that psychiatrists convinced my mother not to beat him like she did with me. He's eleven months younger than me and barely passing high school. He has little respect for people (including my parents) and no respect for property, whether it be his belongings or others'. He is, as I type, shirtless and trash talking on Modern Warfare over Xbox LIVE a couple feet away from me.

I think I have reasonable grounds to form the opinion that, yes, I do think it makes a difference whether or not you are willing to spank your kids to teach them a lesson. A decent spanking lasts for a few minutes. The proper lesson instilled early enough lasts forever.

...Wow, I didn't expect to go on for that long.
 

Froggy Slayer

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Veylon said:
Spanking is an extreme measure and should only be used on very young kids who deliberately cross the line. Once they're older and can understand morals and cause and effect and such, then it shouldn't be used.

Is it physical assault? Yes, it is. Just as keeping your kids from leaving the house is imprisonment and making them wash the dishes and take out the trash is slavery. Unfortunately, youth lack the experience, knowledge, and intelligence to make informed decisions on their own, so parents have to be the authority figure and make them for them.
*slow clap of genuine admiration* well said my good man. Well said.

Also, Percy, Percy, Percy, you're at it again. Please, just stop. My parents aren't bad people, I have an extremely healthy and happy relationship with them both, certainly a lot more healthy than a lot of kids have with their parents. We're extremely good friends, and you probably won't meet many nicer people than them. You know, unless you happen to live next door to Mr Rodgers and Carl Sagan. Anyway, as I said, I wasn't spanked. There's a reason that the term 'slap on the wrist' is used as a metaphor for any small, harmless punishment, and it isn't because they traumatise kids and stunt their development.
 

TheIronRuler

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Mortai Gravesend said:
anthony87 said:
Signa said:
anthony87 said:
Signa said:
The most disgusting thing about these threads is how judgmental the anti-spankers get. "you're a bad parent. You need therapy. You're hurting the innocent! Spanking is sexual!" Yet the pro-spankers say it's all cool if you want to spank or not, they are leaving it up to the parent to decide what is right for their own kids. No one is advocating abuse, no matter how much some of you may want to spin it to sound like that.


I wanted to say something like that but you've put it far better than I could.
Thank you for the applause. It grinds my gears with all these accusations flying around. If you weren't spanked, then you have no place telling everyone that was spanked that they are victims or child abusers. Let the people who were spanked rant about how they were abused when they were naughty.

And being bashed with pots and getting concussions doesn't count for this conversation. That's just fucked up.
And it's the people who were spanked who AREN'T ranting. It always seems to be the ones who don't know what they're talking about that have the most to say.
Riiiiiiight, it's totally not some pro-spanking people blathering about how a lack of spanking is ruining the next generation.
.
I've seen two so far. You've got nothing to add here, really.
 

anthony87

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Mortai Gravesend said:
anthony87 said:
Signa said:
anthony87 said:
Signa said:
The most disgusting thing about these threads is how judgmental the anti-spankers get. "you're a bad parent. You need therapy. You're hurting the innocent! Spanking is sexual!" Yet the pro-spankers say it's all cool if you want to spank or not, they are leaving it up to the parent to decide what is right for their own kids. No one is advocating abuse, no matter how much some of you may want to spin it to sound like that.


I wanted to say something like that but you've put it far better than I could.
Thank you for the applause. It grinds my gears with all these accusations flying around. If you weren't spanked, then you have no place telling everyone that was spanked that they are victims or child abusers. Let the people who were spanked rant about how they were abused when they were naughty.

And being bashed with pots and getting concussions doesn't count for this conversation. That's just fucked up.
And it's the people who were spanked who AREN'T ranting. It always seems to be the ones who don't know what they're talking about that have the most to say.
Riiiiiiight, it's totally not some pro-spanking people blathering about how a lack of spanking is ruining the next generation.
There is? I mean I saw one from a guy who mentioned the stone age or something like that but I haven't seen many people say that a lack of spanking is ruining the next generation. Eh, maybe I skimmed over it.
 

Darkmantle

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Spanking teaches a child to fear the parent, not the action that prompted the spanking.

If I spank my child for wandering too close to the fire, I would make him fear me spanking him, not the fire. So when/if I am out of the picture, what has my child learned? What's to stop him from going near the fire again if I am not there to spank him?

If you are really mad when you do it, it can also teach your kid that the best way to handle your anger, is with violence, Lashing out because your kid did something that pissed you off is not a good choice.

Depends on your goals really, if your goal is to make your kid behave around you in the short term, you will be successful, but as for raising a good adult? The results are often very, very mixed. It often comes to how well and when the parent used spanking as a punishment. I would say there is definitely a place for it in discipline, but to say it is the most effective strategy long term, or should be a first resort punishment, is a grave misuse.

Great thought should be put into when your child deserves a spanking, if you think you should use it at all, it shouldn't just be when you are pissed or irritated. It can easily send the wrong message to your child.